I remember walking through the streets of Istanbul years ago, passing by these small shops selling… | by Rian Shi | Aug, 2025

I remember walking through the streets of Istanbul years ago, passing by these small shops selling wooden wands—some ordinary, some seemingly magical.
There was something about those wands that stirred something in me. I always wanted one, not just as an object, but as a symbol. A kind of connection.
Still, I never bought one. Something in me said: “No, not yet.”

Then I remembered a phrase I once heard:
“The wand chooses the wizard.”
So I let it go.

Sometime later, I was walking through a park with my husband, Hamidreza.
We weren’t talking about anything in particular—just letting the city move around us, moment by moment.
And then, without warning, a wooden stick appeared right in front of me on the sidewalk.
Not broken or discarded—just… there.
Simple. Still. Waiting.

I picked it up.

It felt like it had been waiting for me all along.
It wasn’t just a stick.
It was the wand.

—

I used to think of life in terms of cause and effect.
Want something → Go get it → Then it’s yours.
But this little moment reminded me of something else. Something much deeper.
Not everything has to be chased. Some things come to you when the self is quiet.

In non-duality, there is no real “you” who chooses.
There is only what appears, what moves, what responds.
When the wanting drops—even for a second—something honest appears.
Not from effort. But from alignment.

The wand didn’t arrive because I desired it.
It arrived when I stopped being the one who wanted.

—

If you liked this post, let it find you again someday.
And if you’re still searching—maybe the wand is already on its way.